• G-MAC Tournament Bracket

SALEM, W.Va. (April 27) – The Salem International University softball team will begin play in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) Tournament on Thursday, May 30, at 10:30 a.m. The Tigers will face Trevecca Nazarene, the top seed in the league, to open the tournament at the Athletes in Action Sports Complex in Xenia, Ohio.

Tickets: An All-Tournament Pass, for access to all three days, is $20 for adults and $10 for students. Admission on both Thursday and Friday is $10 for adults and $5 for students. Saturday admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students. Any children under 5 years of age are admitted free. All tickets can be purchased at the gate.

Live Coverage: The G-MAC will provide live statistics and audio for the games. For additional information about the tournament, please click here.

G-MAC Tournament: Salem International is the No. 6 seed in the tournament with a 6-15 conference mark. Trevecca is the No. 1 seed in the tournament behind a 20-1 league record this season. The winner will face the loser of the No. 3 seed, Kentucky Wesleyan, vs. the No. 4 seed, Davis & Elkins, contest at 3 p.m. The loser of the Salem/Trevecca game will meet the loser of the No. 2 seed, Cedarville, vs. the No. 5 seed, Alderson Broaddus, in an elimination game at 12:45 p.m.

National Rankings: There are not any G-MAC teams ranked in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Top 25 poll.
 
Regional Rankings: Trevecca is the lone G-MAC school ranked in the latest NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Rankings and is slotted fifth. The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) and the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Tournament winners receive automatic qualifiers (AQ) into the NCAA Midwest Regional Tournament, with the remaining six spots going to the highest remaining teams in the regional rankings.
 
Scouting the Tigers: Salem International enter the tournament as the sixth and final seed in the tournament behind a 6-15 conference record. Junior catcher Katie Chryssofos (Chapmanville, W.Va./Logan) leads the team in virtually every offensive category, including hits, home runs, RBI and she is tied for the team lead in runs scored. Her numbers also have her in the top five among the G-MAC leaders in home runs, RBI and slugging percentage. Behind Chryssofos, the next three Tigers leading the team in batting are all freshman. Freshmen Alyssa Discepola (Rio Grande, N.J./Middle Township), Hanna Crew (Canton, Ohio/Perry) and Tori Butler (Hedgesville, W.Va./Musselman) are all hitting over .250 this season.
 
A pair of freshman also heads the pitching staff, as freshman Katie Holestin (Covington, Va./Allegheny) and redshirt-freshman Kayla Lynch (Painesville, Ohio/Riverside) accounted for 95 percent of the innings pitched this season. Holestin (9-15) led the staff with 78 strikeouts and a pair of complete game shutouts, while Lynch (3-16) held a 5.89 ERA to lead the team.   
 
Tigers in the Playoffs: The Tigers are making their second-consecutive appearance in the G-MAC Tournament. Last year, Salem International went 1-2 in the dance with a 7-4 upset victory over Cedarville in the opening round of the tournament. Since 1982, the Tigers have never won a league tournament title. Salem International's last deep run came in 2008 when they advanced to the semifinals of the West Virginia Athletic Conference (WVIAC) Tournament and lost to West Virginia Wesleyan 5-4 in a game that went nine innings.
 
Scouting Trevecca: The Trojans enter the tournament as the No. 1 seed in the G-MAC after posting a 20-1 league record and 34-8 overall mark. A trio of Trevecca players lead the league in every major offensive category. Bailey Alexander is batting .447 with a .504 on-base percentage to lead the conference in both statistics. Meanwhile, Ansley Brantley has 13 home runs, 49 runs scored and a .797 slugging percentage and Lindsay Stephens leads the G-MAC with 45 RBI and 56 base hits this season.
 
Trojan pitcher Haley Fagen is the league leader in nearly every major pitching category. She has posted a league-best 18 wins, 1.14 ERA, 132 strikeouts and has held hitters to a .184 batting average. Not to be outdone, fellow twirler Kelsey Kemp ranks fourth in the G-MAC with a 2.55 ERA and second in opponents' batting, yielding hitters to a .216 average.
  
2014 Tournament Rewind: The Tigers clinched an upset victory over Cedarville last year with a huge three-run seventh inning to break a 4-4 tie.  Salem International stepped up defensively in the bottom of the frame with a 6-4-3 double play to end the game. The Tigers were unable to duplicate their game one success, as they were dealt losses by Kentucky Wesleyan and Davis & Elkins to eliminate them from the field.